GRATITUDE REPORT Mid-Year 2018-2019
Dear Friends, This Gratitude Report will give you an insight into the state of ESA. But more than just the numbers, this report will show you a few of the stories behind the numbers and let you know about some of the future plans we have for the school. Since I assumed the role of Headmaster six years ago, my vision for the school has been to raise the bar of accountability that we hold ourselves to in all areas of the school, from academics to athletics and the arts, from the day-to-day maintenance of the campuses to the comprehensive master campus plan that we developed last year, from operations to marketing to fundraising. And the exciting news is that together we are making a real difference for the school, not just today but for the future! There is good and exciting news in every aspect of this report, from the operating budget to Annual Giving to Endowments and capital plans for the future. There are ways for you to make a difference right now, and there is time for you to consider how you can make a transformational difference for the school in the future. I hope you enjoy this report. Lastly, I am writing to thank you for the unbelievable support and generosity that you have shown me personally and ESA over the last six years. And I am asking for your continued support as we move forward. Now, perhaps more than ever, we need your leadership in the community to help us complete our plans. We need you as our ambassadors in Acadiana, telling the stories of how ESA has made the difference for your children. This helps us maintain the demand for an ESA education that has driven our improved financial position. We need your energy and talent as we ask for volunteers to help with everything from being a room parent to serving on a committee to working with our juniors and seniors on Career Day. And we need your continued financial support. When our alumni, parents, grandparents, parents of alumni, trustees, faculty, staff and friends join together as one ESA and invest in the future of our students, there is no limit to what we can create to design an inspiring and unforgettable experience for our students.
Paul Baker, Ph.D., Headmaster
Cover Photo: Physics Boat Regatta, drone shot by Isabelle Berthelot, ’20, ExLabs
ANNUAL FUND
TATES/ TUTWILER FUND
FALCON CLUB
RAMSAY ENDOWMENT RESTRICTED GIFTS
TUITION
Unbudgeted Arts and Athletics Stage upgrades Movement needs Field and gym improvements Studio equipment
MAKING SENSE OF FUNDRAISING AT ESA
Operating Budget Program Financial aid Salaries and benefits Facilities and utilities Debt reduction
Major Capital Projects Transformation of the Cade Campus
Lagniappe PARENT GROUP
RESTRICTED GIFTS
Benches Activity buses MS gym A/C Water filling stations Professional development
COMING!
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Jake Sledge, ’19, National Hispanic Scholar
“The ESA science program has helped me delve into each branch of science on a deep level, understanding each concept intuitively. This understanding brought with it a profound love of the subject only discovered through a conceptual grasp of the ideas and not memorization of equations. The science faculty manage to bring a certain excitement and vigor to each class that leads the student into comprehending and appreciating what they are learning.”
THE ANNUAL FUND Putting Resources Where They Are Needed Most ESA’s yearly operating budget covers everything from academic program to athletics and arts to insurance and utilities, with the largest portion going to salaries and benefits for the exceptional teachers who are at the heart of the ESA Experience. Working with our dedicated board of trustees, we have been able to move the school to a position of fiscal discipline and strength. The other exciting news is that we are moving from a reliance on Annual Giving to supplement the operating budget to having tuition cover our operating expenses. This doesn’t remove the need for Annual Giving. In fact, it means Annual Giving will have an even bigger impact on our ability to bring the very best experience to our students. Annual Giving will no longer have to be used to pay the utility bill in May and June. It can be used for enhanced professional development for our faculty, new equipment and programs outside of the budget, or to support the new Computer and Design Lab that is coming to the Cade campus, for example.
2017-2018 INCOME Tuition Income
89%
Curriculum
5%
Operations
2%
Endowments
2%
Annual Fund
3%
We’ve been able to do this because of three big reasons: • we have worked hard to make sure that each line of the budget is appropriately funded and followed closely through the year; • we have seen a 30% increase in the number of students to become a “full school” (operating at the highest efficiency); and • we have implemented a tuition plan with small inflation-based increases over the past three years that has allowed us to keep up with the rising cost of everything. Giving an unrestricted gift to Annual Fund is a leap of faith. It means you trust us to make the best decisions about where to employ the available resources to create the best experience for ESA students. Your ongoing support of Annual Fund highlights your confidence in the administration, the board of trustees and the faculty and staff of ESA. Thank you!
2017-2018 EXPENSES Financial Assistance
10%
Salaries and Benefits
67%
Professional Development
1%
Athletics
1%
Curriculum
5%
Technology
2%
Debt Service
4%
Operational
8%
Insurance
2%
Capital
2%
MEETING ONGOING NEEDS Annual Giving and technology gifts allow us to keep up with ever-changing technology needs and to give students opportunities to dream, innovate, and create.
RESOURCES ON BOTH CAMPUSES INCLUDE: Smart boards and touchscreen displays in the classrooms 3D printers Glowforge 3D laser printers for cutting and engraving on a variety of materials Fiber networks and wireless coverage indoors and out A digital design lab in Cade for photography, videography and other projects An IdeaLab in Lafayette that serves as a makerspace for activities across the curriculum. The ESA Parent Group contributed $25,000 this year to outfit the IdeaLab.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Phillip Dauterive, ’28,
TinkerLab Enrichment Cluster
“I chose TinkerLab because I’m excited about taking things apart to see what’s inside them and what makes them work.” Phillip Dauterive, ’28, pictured center, with teacher Ashleigh D’Aunoy and cluster partner Maddox Savoy, ’27, in the TinkerLab Enrichment Cluster
CAPITAL PROJECTS
Facilities To Match Our Programs The impact of donations to ESA’s capital projects is probably most apparent if you walk through the amazing Enrichment Center at the Lower School (right). That building, constructed with the support of The Anchor Society and the leadership of Bernie Dupré, sets a cornerstone for ESA’s future and represents how we look at education and the empowering of our students. It is a unique educational space that sends the message that we have a different vision for inspiring young minds. In addition, we built a maintenance space in Lafayette to house everything needed to keep the campus efficient and beautiful. Also, on the Cade campus last year, we beefed up the infrastructure and quietly built a state of the art sewage treatment plant that will handle present and future needs of the campus. Lastly, we completed a Cade Campus master plan that we are using to guide our strategic planning for the next five years.
ANCHOR SOCIETY THE ADMIRAL’S CLUB Mohamad Allam, MD and Kelly Cobb, MD Anonymous Dr. and Mrs. D. Joey Barrios III Maria and Dani Bidros Doss and Sally Bourgeois Dr. and Mrs. Jason A. Breaux Nick and Johnnie Gachassin Dr. and Mrs. Philip Gachassin Ann and Patrick Herrington Mr. and Mrs. L. John Monteleone III The Pecoraro Family Bill and Alice Grant and Nicky Ryan and Elena Arcos Dr. Perri and Mr. Joel Prellop Court and Kylie Ramsay Mr. and Mrs. John H. Robison IV Rodney and Cindi Savoy Richard and Rachel Spoon Mr. and Mrs. Patrick G. Stokes Leigh Godchaux and Joshua Vice Andy and Leah Vigé Dr. and Mrs. Matthew D. Williams, ‘91 CAPTAINS Mr. and Mrs. Russell L. Brown Mr. and Mrs. Tyson A. Cromwell, ‘96 ESA Parent Group Jeremy and Christy Harson Mr. and Mrs. Dwight S. “Bo” Ramsay FIRST MATES Dr. and Mrs. Wayne “Boo” Cestia Tyler and Angela Davis Dr. Otis Drew and Dr. Kim Drew Matthew and Carla Granberry Mr. and Mrs. Patrick W. Gray Drs. Chris and A’Dair Herrington Christopher Todd and Amy Allums Lee Brady and Faith Menard Kat and Eric Movassaghi, ‘91 Dr. and Mrs. Samuel H. Shuffler
“...It is a unique educational space that sends the message that we have a different vision for inspiring young minds.�
HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS The Falcon Club is ESA’s booster club for arts and athletics. Each year, Falcon Club memberships and fundraisers provide teachers and coaches with wish list items, such as the Piano Lab in the Lafayette Campus Enrichment Center. Other recent Falcon Club gifts include a concession stand at the Cade soccer field, sponsorship of a guest artist for Chorus class, a jumping pit extension, and more. The ESA Parent Group welcomes new families, and hosts the annual Family Picnic and Bingo in the fall, and The Happenin’, a celebration for the ESA community, in the spring. Parent Group volunteers support classroom teachers, help with class trips, organize work days to keep the campuses beautiful and so much more. Through dues and fundraisers, the Parent Group provides funds for special projects and extras that aren’t funded through the annual operating budget. This year, the Parent Group contributed $25,000 to outfit the Lafayette Campus IdeaLab. The Falcon Club and the ESA Parent Group also joined together to provide air conditioning for the middle school gym. The new system not only makes parents
in the bleachers happy, but also allows us to use the space for service projects and ESA Summer programs, and provides a quiet space for taking AP and standardized tests. This fall, the middle school gym provided a warm spot for lower schoolers to share a picnic with upper school buddies after all-school Eucharist.
“Teaching music theory with the piano hits on all the learning styles: kinesthetic, aural, and visual.� Lower School Music Teacher Rusty Roden
ENDOWMENTS: BUILDING A LEGACY ESA’s two main endowments - The Tates/Tutwiler Endowment and the Ramsay Endowment - are rooted in the school’s founding principles. The Tates/Tutwiler Endowment supports need-based scholarships and helps us live our mission of making an ESA education available to all talented students in Acadiana. When the Smedes-Jardine family donated the land for the Cade Campus, they stipulated that ESA should educate the less fortunate in the local community. Today, earnings from the Tates/Tutwiler Endowment support ESA’s ability to award financial aid. Nearly 1/3 of ESA students are receiving financial assistance this year. With the support of ESA alumni and the continuing efforts of Dr. and Mrs. Tate and Mr. Tutwiler, the endowment has exceeded $1 million. The Ramsay Endowment supports teachers. When ESA opened in 1979, the founding trustees made the decision to focus on talented teachers and exceptional program above all else. To support that ongoing priority, earnings from the Ramsay Endowment are used for professional development and for supplementing salaries so that ESA can continue to recruit and retain the very best teachers. Today, the Ramsay Endowment stands at about $775,000. By policy, we can take up to 80% of the earnings each year. This means that the corpus of each endowment continues to grow. Over the past few years, the endowments have contributed $50,000-$80,000 each year to these goals! ESA needs an endowment of $20,000,000 to ensure that we will flourish in the future.
ALUMNA/FACULTY SPOTLIGHT
Holly Vaughan Trant, ‘00, ESA PK3 teacher
“Our whole hearts, our whole being, everything we are, we put into this school because we love this school and we believe in this school.”
FUNDING INNOVATIVE CURRICULUM A gift by the grandparents of an ESA alumnus is providing opportunities for an ever-increasing number of students. Half of the gift went to fund academic support scholarships for students needing additional help in developing habits of scholarship. The second half of their gift was instrumental in the creation of our ExLabs Creative Communication class. Working with ESA alumnus Brett Landry, ‘95, an expert in marketing, visual arts and communication, and ESA visual arts department co-chair Jennifer Desormeaux Graycheck, ‘01, the ExLabs team collaborates on concepting, storyboarding, filming and editing to develop short videos that celebrate the ESA spirit. Through group and individual projects, ExLabs artists are gaining technical expertise while developing confidence in their communication skills. By turning an IRA mandatory distribution into a tax-deductible charitable donation, these grandparents have helped to inspire five semesters of creativity and counting!
ESA Picnic Club, drone shot by Katie Osborne, ’19, ExLabs
ESA BY THE NUMBERS 2018 ESA STUDENTS: 620 Lower School: 268 Middle School: 148 Upper School: 204
Over $1
million in need-based
financial aid was awarded to 32%
of ESA students
for the 2018-2019 school year.
ESA TEACHERS: 101 With Master’s Degrees: 56 With Doctorates: 9
The Class of 2018 received
college merit scholarships totaling more than $7.5 million.
Average class size:
13 ESA average ACT score: SAT score:
ESA teams have earned
84
STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
since 1979.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHT
Grace Pellegrin, ’25
“I like how we can trust everybody here. We can leave stuff lying around. If you see something you shouldn’t on a test, you won’t change your answer because it’s not the right thing to do.”
WILLS. TRUSTS. BEQUESTS. LIFE INCOME GIFTS. LIFE INSURANCE TRANSFERS. When you want to leave a legacy, please remember ESA.
We would welcome an opportunity to discuss any of these types of donations with our supporters. Please contact Linda Dautreuil at ldautreuil@esacadiana.com or (337) 365-1416 for more information.
ALUMNI BY THE NUMBERS 1983 Number of alumni: 1,452 First graduating class:
Number of legacy graduates (alumni who are children of ESA alumni): Number of alumni children currently enrolled at ESA: Number of alumni among ESA’s faculty and staff:
11
74
16
Number of colleges attended by the 179 graduates in the classes of 2015-2018:
67
EPISCOPAL SCHOOL OF ACADIANA
P.O. Box 380 • Cade, LA 70519 www.ESAcadiana.com
Layered artwork in watercolor, tempera, and pastel by Ashton Thomas, ’31, for the kindergarten Thankfulness Chapel